Stimulus: Taxpayers Get Billions; What Do You Get?

Sending a kid to college, purchasing a new car, buying a first home or making the one you own more energy efficient. Those are a few of the ways Americans might cut their tax bills under the economic stimulus package Congress is crafting.

By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press

The biggest tax breaks target the working poor, especially those with children, but many apply to middle-income and even wealthy taxpayers.

Most workers would see about a $20 a week increase in their take-home pay, starting around June, from a new tax credit. Millions of additional low-income workers who don’t make enough money to pay income taxes would get checks from the government when they file their 2009 tax returns.

The $819 billion economic recovery package approved by the House last week includes about $188 billion in tax breaks for families and individuals over the next two years. The Senate package, which has topped $900 billion, has about $263 billion in tax breaks for families and individuals.

The goal is to get people to spend money at a time when most are cutting back and saving more. It makes sense to be frugal when the economy is in such bad shape, but it hurts the economy when everyone does it.